SEOUL: South Korean President Park Geun-Hye on Tuesday told her government to prepare for large-scale defections from North Korea, just days after direct appealing to its citizens to flee their country. “Defectors are like unification that has arrived early, and a test bed for unification,” Park said. “I hope we can swiftly secure sufficient system and capacity to accommodate North Korean citizens who come seeking freedom,” she added. South Korea’s unification ministry, which handles cross-border affairs, declined to confirm the report. Over the years, nearly 30,000 North Koreans have fled poverty and repression in their country and settled in the South.

Source: Manila Times October 11, 2016 08:03 UTC